New projections by the Office for National Statistics show that in many parts of the country even future generations will see their health effectively broken long before they reach pension age.
In some areas an average baby born today can expect to see their health deteriorate irrevocably up to 10 years before they are due to retire.
Even when wide regional variations are taken into account, the average so-called “healthy life expectancy” – the length of time people would normally expect to lead a full and active life – in England is below the state pension age.
It calls into the question one of the strongest arguments for increasing the retirement age: that because people are living longer than in the past they should also have to work longer.
But the report also exposes a dramatic divide between north and south as well as the wealthiest and poorest neighbourhoods.
Children in the some better-off areas can now expect to remain fit and healthy as much as 18 years longer than their poorer counterparts. Read on and comment » | John Bingham, Social Affairs Editor | Wednesday, September 18, 2013
